“Or – “Marvel’s Most Maligned (Non) Team Title…’ It always puzzles me why some folks seem to have a problem with The Defenders as a concept. “They’re not team players,” I have been told, and indeed, that was part of the POINT of the original four Defenders aligning. Many great and potentially great characters were Defenders, and the book ran for over a decade during times when folks like Green Arrow and the X-Men weren’t considered viable solo characters. Honestly, I blame it all on ‘Secret Defenders,’ which is to the original Defenders title what Zero Hour was the the

Marvel wants you to know that it has a big 64-page story written by the “top creators in the business” that will give you a look at what is to come in 2012. The company sent over another teaser image for you to gaze at – you might even call it a trailer to a trailer.

Or – “Satan, Satan, Satan and Satan, Attorneys At Law!” Recent announcements from Marvel have reminded me that there are few Marvel Universe concepts that I miss more than The Defenders. And by Defenders, I mean good Defenders, as the last three miniseries have been pretty lackluster. Even when the stories were completely inexplicable, there was something interesting in seeing the adventures of ‘the other guys,’ characters who didn’t really make a good team so much as they needed one another. For nearly a year before this issue, the team was spread thin with the menace of a group called

With all of the Marvel “It’s In You Or It’s Not” teaser images, it didn’t take fans too long to figure out the Defenders were returning. Defenders #1 will debut in December, and will be written by Matt Fraction with art by Terry Dodson. “The Hulk needs a favor and he goes to people he feels owe him. That happens to be the some of the people you and I know as the Defenders. It’s not necessarily a pleasant reunion. It’s not a comfortable one. There are a lot of grudges because of some recent history, but the awkward truth

Or – “Why The Best Leaders Aren’t Always Obvious…” I’m a firm believer that it’s never a good idea to try and fully apply real world thought processes to the adventures of our four-color imaginary friends. (Faithful Spoilerites who pay attention will note that I break virtually all of my rules anyway, on a shockingly regular basis.) Recent noise out of Marvel Comics seems to indicate that a coming storyline will deal with a split in ranks the X-Men, leading to two factions, one of which will be led by Wolverine. The ridiculousness of Wolverine leading anything brought me to

Or – “War Against The Zodiac! (Also: DOO DAH! DOO DAH!)” In the classic Marvel Universe, there was always a superhero team pecking order. The Avengers with the first line of defense against criminal conspiracies and schmucks trying to, say, kill everyone in New York born under the sign of Gemini. The X-Men were mostly dormant, but still showed up here and there to fight the odd mutant menace or guy with a funny head. The Fantastic Four were the ones who dealt with all the cosmic menaces, like when Galactus mistook the Roman Coloseum for a Port-A-John. And when

Or – “Because I’ve Fallen Further Behind Than Ever Before…” I have to tell you, two weeks of being unable to type without crying like a little girl really makes your work pile up.Â The last couple of weeks of comics have been a tumultuous ride, with a whole lot of minor things happening that made me happy.Â An old favorite disappoints, while a surprise contender impresses the heck out of me.Â British vampires, time-lost Arcturans, underground civilizations, the chupacabra, and a fifty-foot stalk of marijuana await you, beyond the fold!

Or – “In Which I Discuss The Changing Role Of The Limited Series…” It’s difficult to remember that, in comics terms, the Limited Series has only been around for a few short years.Â (Well, I should probably amend that statement to say the INTENTIONALLY Limited Series.Â A lot of books ran 4, 5, or 6 issues and got cancelled due to sales, editorial caveat, or general sucktitude.)Â Used to be that the point of the Limited Series was to showcase characters who hadn’t been seen in a while, or to finish off story points that didn’t have another venue.Â These

Or – “How DID Devil-Slayer And Son Of Satan Co-Exist, Anyway?” I give Tony Stark a lot of crap, especially since he turned into Doctor Doom for our own good, but it’s obvious that the man doesn’t understand one whit what makes the Defenders tick. The point of the Non-Team was always that it’s members CHOSE to associate with one another, and then events just sort of occurred AROUND them. Far from being a low-rent Avengers, the Defenders were instead friends and associates who acted heroically in those situations where big-name teams couldn’t have gone or wouldn’t have even bothered.